SAVED BY A BIRD.
THE surgeon in one of the Nashville hospitals said, pointing to one of his patients, “There is a young man slowly starving to death. His fever is broken, and he might get well, but we cannot get him to eat anything. If you can tempt him to eat he may recover.”
I went over and stood beside his cot. “I am glad to see you looking so much better,” I said enthusiastically. He shook his head. “Oh, yes you are; and now what can I bring you to eat? I’ll bring you something real nice; what shall it be?”
“Nothing.” And he turned his face away in disgust.
“I’ll tell you what you can eat;” for I suddenly remembered that I had seen a lot of birds hanging in a meat-shop as I came down to that hospital; “you can eat a nice broiled bird.”
He looked up in surprise with a ghost of a smile on his face. “Maybe I could.”
“Why, of course you could; and I will go right away and get one for you.”
“It will be too much trouble.”
“No, it will not be a bit of trouble. You lie still and think what good eating a bird is till it comes.”
I hurried away lest he should change his mind, bought some birds, and took them to the Christian Commission Home, where there was an excellent cook.
“Aunt Debby,” I said, as I marched into the kitchen with the birds, “I want you to broil two of these birds the very best you can. A soldier’s life depends upon them.”
“Laws, missus! You ’most scare me to death talking dat way. I’ze weak as a rag, and ken do nuthen.”
“But you’ll do it right, and then the soldier will get well. I’ll help you.”
In a very short time two birds nicely broiled, and dressed with a little fresh butter and a pinch of salt and pepper, lay in the bottom of a hot covered dish. A card with the name of the hospital, the name of the soldier, and the number of his cot, was attached to the basket; and a half-grown colored boy in service at the house was intrusted with it, and bore it away in haste.
“Take notice, Ben, what he does and says, so you can tell us when you come back,” was my last injunction.
In due time Ben came back, laughing. “Did he eat them?” I questioned eagerly.
“O missus, you o’ter ’a’ seen ’im. I sot don the basket and tooked off de cover and held the birds up close tu ’im; an’ my, but it did smell good! He jus’ gim it one look, den he grab one an’ begun to eat. But I wus a-holden de dish dar, an’ he seed t’other bird, and he grabbed dat, an’ he dove his han’ dow under ’is piller an’ brung out an ole newspaper, and he wrapped up t’other bird and chucked it down under his piller, and den he went on eaten as fast as he could. Oh, golly, but wusent he hungry!” And Ben doubled himself up and laughed as only a colored boy can laugh.
The next day I was called away to Chattanooga, and so I left all my work in other hands. While in Chattanooga, General Hood marched northward and broke the lines of communication between Nashville and Chattanooga, and I was detained there several weeks. The very day after my return I was on the streets of Nashville, and a soldier met me with great cordiality.
“I don’t believe you know me,” he said.
“No, I don’t remember to have ever met you before,” I replied.
“I’m the man you sent the birds to.”
“I am glad to see you. How is it that you are up and out so soon?”
“Well, you see, there wasn’t anything the matter with me, but I did not know it. I thought I was going to die, but the birds did the business. I never did taste anything quite so nice as theywere, and I have been eating ever since, anything I could lay my hands on. And now I am well, and am going to join my regiment.”
After a few cordial thanks and good wishes we separated, and I have never seen him since. If these lines fall under his notice, I would like to hear from him.